Last month we talked about the common habit in Australia of walking around barefoot. Everyone had strong opinions in the comments and I loved it! Some Aussies weighed in saying, “What’s the big deal, mate?” while other of their countrywomen were like, “How dare you, I wouldn’t be caught dead!” Elsewhere there were Americans voicing fright over Australian snakes and spiders, which was rebutted with assertions that though Aussie snakes are some of the most poisonous, many of them have poor injection mechanisms, and anyway they don’t have the type of venom that leads to limb amputation, so there! And one of the biggest counter-arguments was, “But what about Americans wearing shoes indoors?!?!” So in the name of science (and my anarchistic drive to incite heated yet friendly debate), let’s dig into that, shall we? HuffPost has helpfully consulted with doctors who were largely in favor of going barefoot indoors, over wearing socks and slippers:
A podiatrist on the pros: “I’m a big advocate for going barefoot at home,” [clinical podiatrist Dr. Robert] Conenello said. “[The practice] increases intrinsic muscular strength within the feet.” He explained that the primary benefit of walking barefoot is the reinforcement of the muscles in the feet, which tend to weaken “as we age and wear shoes.” These muscles are closely linked to our overall mobility, so their deterioration can contribute to reduced movement as we get older.
A dermatologist on the pros: Dermatologist Dr. Hannah Kopelman … also mentioned that going barefoot at home can have some unexpected benefits for the skin on your feet. “Walking barefoot at home … allows your skin to breathe, which can help prevent moisture buildup and reduce the risk of fungal infections like athlete’s foot,” she explained. … “Feeling the texture of different surfaces underfoot can be grounding and relaxing, almost like a mini reflexology session,” Kopelman said. “For those without underlying skin or foot conditions, this can be a natural way to connect with your environment and promote mindfulness.”
Barefoot living requires clean floors: One potential downside of walking barefoot indoors is the increased exposure to irritants or allergens on the floor, such as dust, pet dander or cleaning chemicals, as Kopelman pointed out. For individuals with sensitive skin or chronic conditions like contact dermatitis or eczema, this could be a significant concern. While Conenello acknowledges similar risks — such as stepping on pathogens like fungi in moist environments — he is quick to emphasize that “proper hygiene can help mitigate these risks… Wash your feet frequently, dry them thoroughly and moisturize,” he advised.
Accidents can happen: Other painful risks associated with going barefoot include the potential for slipping on slick or wet surfaces, or stepping on something hard and sharp that could cause injury. As anyone who has ever stubbed a toe or accidentally stepped on a Lego can attest, such incidents can be excruciating. Kopelman points out that individuals with diabetes or poor circulation are more vulnerable to severe consequences, as “even a minor foot injury can lead to serious health issues.”
There is a risk of muscle & joint issues: Kopelman also noted that, while walking barefoot can help strengthen muscles, the repeated practice of doing so on hard surfaces could potentially lead to foot fatigue or plantar fasciitis, a condition where the tissue connecting the heel bone to the toes becomes inflamed. “Over time, the lack of cushioning can put stress on the joints, especially in those who already have foot or joint issues,” she explained.
What about socks? According to Conenello, “there is nothing wrong with wearing socks.” They’ll simply decrease the benefits associated with being barefoot. “There is now a filter between the ground and the foot,” he said. Kopelman added that socks can offer “minimal protection from minor abrasions or allergens while still allowing your feet to feel relatively free.” Direct contact with surfaces that may harbor bacteria or irritants is also minimized when wearing socks.
As an adult in my own home, I’ve always taken my shoes off at the door and changed into house slippers that never leave the confines of the apartment. But I don’t wear the slippers when lying in repose sitting on my sofa. And sometimes I do pop up and move around barefoot, but in my head I always think, “Drat, I should’ve put my slippers on!” So maybe I should just let that voice go? And yes, staying on top of personal and environmental hygiene is the foundation for good health. As for socks, I’m usually too hot to bother with them — the sandal-free Northeastern winter months are a real struggle! But in a strange twist of fate, this holiday season I was gifted no fewer than four pairs of fuzzy socks. One pair is even meant to be worn instead of slippers, with grips on the bottom. Getting one pair of socks as a gift was, well, disappointing. Two was kind of funny, in an ironic way. But with four I have to wonder if the universe is trying to tell me something…
In any event, let the discourse commence!
Photos credit: Antoni Shkraba, Mikhail Nilov, PNW Production, Alena Darmel on Pexels
In summer, I frequently go barefoot in my house. But in winter, my house is cold, and I am not a fan of cold feet. #teamslippers
I’m the exact same way. I have hardwood floors in my condo and I’m almost always barefoot unless it’s really cold outside (like…right now hahaha). When the temps drop, I put on my fuzzy slippers.
Absolutely no outside shoes in my house. My husband will wear slippers and I’m always in socks. I’ve actually never gone barefoot in my own home (I have OCD and it’s one of my things, along with immediately showering and changing into inside clothes when I get home).
Shoes come off the second I get home (not a house rule for anyone else, just my preference). Barefoot in warm months, socks or slippers in colder months. Aside from temperature my preference is barefoot.
This is me. Prefer to be barefoot but will wear socks or slippers when it’s chilly. Guests can do whatever they’re comfortable with.
I hate socks (texture issues) but also can’t stand my feet touching the floor (also texture issues). As a Canadian, shoes come off the moment I’m in the door, regardless of weather (it’s a hardwired reaction now) and plastic Birk-like house sandals go on. I happily will walk barefoot in my backyard when the weather is good.
Large dog (previously 2) with large toe nails that can scrape the skin off and not getting rid of him just so I can go completely barefoot in the house.
I don’t wear shoes in the house. I usually wear slippers, but going barefoot occasionally can have its advantages. I have porcelain tile floors and I was able to identify a leak in a pipe running under the house because I was walking barefoot down the hallway and felt a hotspot. It was caught fairly quickly so my water bill was fortunately not astronomical that quarter because of the leak.
I’ve always lived barefoot, until these past few years, im always in slippers. Getting old, getting cold..
But no shoes in the house!!!
I love going barefoot but my arches are really high and if I don’t wear shoes or something supportive most of the time when I am walking, my feet and ankles will throb with pain at the end of the night. This didn’t really start happening (the throbbing pain) until my late 30s, and it’s just another thing to add to the list of things I didn’t realize would accompany aging
Me too manda — very high arches mean I have to wear orthotics or my feet an ankles hurt. I’m also undergoing chemo and get neuropathy in my hands and feet which means I have to wear slippers to ease the painful tingling sensation.
I hope the chemo is going well and that you are almost done!!
Also, I’ve never met anyone else with the ankle thing! I found my orthotic didn’t make much of a difference, so I pretty much just wear comfy sneakers and birkenstocks all the time
Yeah, this advice–and from a doctor, too!–sort of ignores the fact that a whole lot of people can’t walk barefoot comfortably.
Barefeet inside my whole life. I have hardwood floors with are rugs. And it’s barefoot and those rubber/plastic Birkenstock style sandals from Target. I just like being barefoot.
Our house is 100% no shoes (although I give guests the option and they typically take them off).
As for what I wear (or not) it’s totally weather dependent. We have carpets up the stairs/upstairs and mostly hard floor downstairs so I have a pair of flipflops and a pair of slippers at the bottom of the stairs. We also have cat litter boxes downstairs and no matter how much I sweep and vac there’s always a stray bit so while (temperature depending) I love to be barefoot, I tend to put something on when I get to the bottom of the stairs.
If it’s really cold I wear the (cosy sheepskin) slippers upstairs (my office is up there) but they always come off if I’m on the sofa, lying on my bed, etc.
I like to be barefoot outside in the warmer months. I have been known to walk in the snow to feed the birds though. I don’t wear shoes in the house, but my podiatrist said that I need more support so I have a pair of indoor only Stegmans that I use when I feel I need that. I do like cozy wool socks in the winter though!
Once I got plantar fasciitis, my barefoot days were over. I have a pair of Hoka recovery slides that are indoor only and keep me from crawling to the bathroom in agonies at night. The PF appeared OVERNIGHT in my mid 50s, so there is something to look forward to…
I developed it because I’m an idiot and tried to incorporate sprints into my workouts in my 40s-I thought I was building up slowly, but nope. It’s been months and it occasionally STILL pops up. I wear recovery house sandals indoors, and my husband and son both have extremely flat (like straight edge, roll ankles inward flat) feet, so they wear Oofos.
For anyone with flat, flat feet-they also use VKTRY insoles and it has made an incredible difference. We used to tape my son’s feet before every game/practice and he still would come home hurting; once we switched to VKTRYs, he has 0 pain. Same for my husband who prefers VKTRYs to his custom orthotics. Game changer.
Oh, good to know. My son has terrible pronation and flat feet. He tried a new OTC orthotic instead of his custom ones and the jury is still out on them. I’ll let him know about the ones you like. Thanks!
Same. I have house shoes , can’t walk around barefoot otherwise I pay for it later.
To those with clean floors and no orthepitic problems, enjoy!
Same here, if I go barefoot on my hard floors, I will end up with back pain, foot pain, plantar fasciitis, all the fun stuff. I have a pair of crocs that are my house shoes. They don’t go anywhere else but inside my house. Plus it gives a little protection as I am prone to stubbing my toes!
I second this. I have some foot health issues that were brewing all my life but became symptomatic after wearing slippers so much during the pandemic. I have a pair of indoor-only Hokas and my feet are much happier.
That reminds me, when I’m doing housework that I know will take me a couple of hours or so, I wear my Veja ‘grandad’ sneakers. They’ve got a nice thick supportive sole; otherwise, my back & hips will hurt too much (I live in an apartment with wood floors overlying concrete).
@RMS I got PF in my 30s from an excess of dancing in heels. * Acupuncture was a life saver!
*I took up line dancing after divorce (it was the 90s) 🤠and went 2 times a week plus regular dancing on Saturday nights when he had the kids.
We regularly dance all night on Saturdays now and my feet are fine.
No shoes inside the house period — for family or guests. I go bare feet only on carpets (unless it’s winter) and wear non-slip grip socks on floors (unless it’s summer).
As someone who has recovered from torn plantar fascia, I am very rarely barefoot, including at home. Slippers, or even better, Birks, around the house for support.
Canadian here. No one I know here would ever dream of leaving shoes on in the house (in any house, for that matter). Slippers are available if guests want them but otherwise it’s bare feet in summer, socks in winter. And for me personally, bare feet all year round if I’m not going out😀
I’ve always been barefoot indoors (no shoes in the house, ever). But last year I stepped funny on the hardwood floor and somehow injured my foot. It’s as so painful on my heel. I got a pair of Birkenstock slippers and now feel strange not wearing them. I also kick them off when I’m sitting or laying down so I also sometimes get up without them. But generally I think my feet are better off supported/cushioned by the slippers now.
Upstate NY here. Outside shoes are taken off at the door and put on my shoe mat. In the summer I’m barefoot. I have hardwood floors, so in the winter I wear socks. I’m in and out of the hospital/outpatient for various medical things and my favorites are the hospital grippy socks for the winter. free-ish (I’m sure my insurance company is charged for them), fuzzy and warm.
Barefoot or socks. No shoes inside.
One of my biggest pet peeve is “TV or movie characters wearing shoes while lying on a bed or sofa”.
I have been struggling with plantar fasciitis, so I very rarely go barefoot. But I have birks — sandals in summer, clogs in winter — that I wear at home. Everyone at my house is shoe-free except my husband, who often forgets to take them off or puts them on then wanders around the house for a while before he leaves. Drives me crazy, but he has other good qualities. 🙂 Guests can choose their comfort level… between my husband and two dogs, I’m vacuuming all the time anyway, so I don’t stress about it. I really admire those who can be disciplined about it, though!
Team fuzzy socks with the grips! Old Navy sells them and they last a long time. I also have hot feet so just wear the ankle ones (millennial forever). Also Canadian and I have never worn shoes (even house shoes) in the house unless I’m running in for something quickly.
I work from home so I wear my slippers during the day when I am in “work mode” then go barefoot elsewhere.
Barefoot nearly 24/7.
Some of the quoted article reads like #Pippatips. “To avoid contacting the floor with one’s bare feet, consider wearing socks or shoes!”
Team Slippers! I have Vionic slippers with arch support. I feel more stable wearing “house shoes” since I’ve had a hip replacement and I don’t want to fall. I slip into Crocs if I am going in the yard with the dog or to garden. My husband and I each have the fabulous hands-free Skechers to slip on/off when going into the real world. It’s a chore now to have to tie shoes LOL.
I just got a hip replacement a couple of months ago & am still giddy about it. I love my new hip!! Best birthday present ever! 🚶♀️💃🤸♀️🏊♀️🧘♀️
A lot of it comes down to foot health and atmosphere. It’s cold in NE, I wear slippers. All sorts of foot ailments can require a shoe/foot covering with more — or less — support. My mother wears orthotics that only fit in her sneakers, and her balance isn’t great and sneakers help with that, too, so that’s what she wears all the time. I have high arches and arthritis in my big toe. I used to be barefoot all time, but now it hurts. For the record I think “no outside shoes in the house” is silly. Just clean your floors?? (Yes, there are exceptions like mud and manure and whatever, but in general.)
Yeah! A door mat for wiping your shoes off is always handy. I don’t get the ‘no outside shoes inside’ deal. I didn’t grow up that way. 🤷♀️. Wet, muddy shoes, sure, take them off at the door; but everything else? Oooh, germs! They’re already inside the house!
Team Barefoot here. I’ve been barefoot at home pretty much my entire life. Sometimes in the winter if it’s really chilly I’ll wear the socks with gripper feet or slippers. No shoes for me, although If guests ask, I’ll tell them to remove theirs. Unless your whole house is carpeted, I would think wearing regular socks in the house would be slippery and dangerous.
I prefer to be barefoot and will be unless it’s too chilly, in which case I wear slippers, socks or UGGs.
Yes, sometimes my feet get dirty. I clean my hardwood floors twice a week but it’s hard to keep them totally spotless. I just scrub my feet in the shower with a soapy mesh pouf and it solves the problem.
I don’t understand why anyone would have a problem with this. I’d rather get my feet dirty than my floor with shoes that have been worn out and about. It’s easier to clean my two feet than my whole floor.
I spent most of my life with feet that ran too warm to wear slippers, something my childhood self was sad about, because some slippers were so cute compared to the shoes I was allowed.
However, I have always preferred to have socks on at home, including to bed, unless I was wearing sandals out. And then sometime as I approached 40, suddenly my feet started running colder and fluffy socks at home in winter was just right.
We never wear shoes inside the house. We go barefoot in the summer — only in the house — and wear slippers or fuzzy socks all winter long.
I prefer the latter because my slipper-wearing family members sound like flat-footed zombies, slap-slap-slapping around the wood floors in our house.
I grew up in a house where people wore shoes inside, and I CANNOT STAND my feet getting dirty walking around barefoot. In my own home, which is all hardwood and tile on the first floor, we *mostly* do not wear shoes inside. It’s not a hard and fast rule though. Personally, I wear house shoes inside 95% of the time. My kids wear socks or are barefoot though.
We vacuum and mop several times a week, but the floor still gets dirty. I just don’t like the feeling of particles on my feet, I don’t like my feet being cold, and I don’t like getting socks dirty, so I just wear house shoes. Never while sitting or laying on the couch though, and I take them off when I’m going upstairs where it’s carpeted.
I know it’s weird but I don’t like taking off my shoes at someone else’s house. I’ll do it, but especially if it’s a party, it sucks when you step on crumbs or spilled food or dog hair, etc and then your socks are dirty. If I’m wearing uggs I will bring my own socks!
Love this post. Let’s talk about health too
Our house is an outdoor shoes off once you enter (guests have the option to leave them on but our friends tend to bring slippers if they’re hanging out). Conversely we bring our slippers (or grippy socks) with us to friends houses to slip into upon our arrival.
I wear my punk rock Birkenstock clogs with socks around the house for better protection/support with a variety of different socks – weather dependent. Every now and then I’ll wear my house shoes out to fill bird feeders or something but never ever in public. My husband has indoor only slippers and won’t cross the threshold if they’re on 😂
We live in the PacNW where floors run cold and it can be damp from the rain.
No street shoes in the house. Non negotiable. Socks are fine. I think foot training and barefoot walking are absolutely necessary. Your feet will tell you when they need support. Look at your arches and the soles of your shoes for any imbalances.
Team barefoot, no shoes in the house. In the winter I have many pairs of sherpa socks that I can throw in the washer.
I always went barefoot until I broke my big toe badly and had to have a screw in it. For so long every little bump was extremely painful so I got used to wearing slippers and haven’t gone back.
I wear slippers or socks because I can’t stand the feeling of my feet on bare floor. I also have a cat and don’t want to step in a hairball or God forbid, step on the occasional dead mouse (NYC life). Team slippers.
No, cannot. I wear Birkenstocks in my home. I live in Hawaii & have my windows open year-round, 24/7. My lanai stretches the length of my living room & dining rooms with screened sliding glass doors that are always open. The dirt that accumulates on my wood floors, ugh, I don’t like the feel of that on my feet nor do I want to track it into my bed (although I have a throw rug on my side of the bed). In lieu of cleaning daily (I clean weekly), I’m wearing my Birkenstocks, thank you very much.
Hello Beanie. It’s currently 7 degrees today where I live. Please say more words about Hawaii.
The air is sweet with the scent of the last of the plumeria, birds are chirping in the monkeypod tree across the street, roosters are crowing down the block (we have a feral chicken issue here), the ocean is a lovely gradation of greens to blues, and it won’t be too hot today–not even rising above the 70s!
I’m always barefoot at home, year round.
We don’t have a no-shoes-in-the-house rule right now, but I will ask nicely that you please remove dirty or mud-loaded shoes at the door. When visitors see my feet they may ask if they should remove their shoes while others just do so without asking.
Hello Beanie. It’s currently 7 degrees today where I live. Please say more words about Hawaii.
I’m Canadian, this isn’t even a conversation here, shoes are taken off at the front door and you are either barefoot/socks, or in slippers. I have literally never been in a home where people didn’t remove their shoes at the door. In the winter you’re bringing in snow and salt and the rest of the year you’d be tracking in lord knows what on the bottom of your shoes… I always assumed that Americans in states with snowy winters took their shoes off and this shoes in the house thing was only normal in the parts of the country with warmer weather?
I’m always barefoot in the house. After a lifetime of wearing high heels for work, my feet deserve all the breaks they can get. My husband, on the other hand, wears shoes all the time. He WFH and *still* wears shoes in the house from the moment he gets out of the shower, until right before he gets into bed. I could never.